The Support System We Needed: Carol’s “Ours” Story

The work that Greenhouse has done to support us, to help us with provisions for the nursery, connections with others in the community… I can’t tell you enough, it’s been a godsend to us.

I’m Carol, one of the staff members at NEWPIN Drop-In. We provide a service that supports children, parents, and carers by building on the strengths of parenting and promoting school readiness. We also offer our elderly community a welcoming space to socialise and make friends, helping to reduce isolation and loneliness.

We first had an interaction with Greenhouse when Maria walked into the Nursery during her community outreach, and from there, we built a rapport. Greenhouse brought a wealth of knowledge and skills to support our service, organised a weekly delivery of fresh farm vegetables and fruit, as well as sharing information about local funding opportunities we could apply for.

After budget cuts, we had to go down to just two staff members managing everything. But Maria and the team were so helpful, coming to help out on days when we were overwhelmed.

With the Greenhouse Centre opening again, we’ll be filling a gap that we’ve noticed in childcare for 2-4-year-olds. We’re having a class in the Centre to give the young children space to be active, be free and enjoy. On top of having fun, it’s crucial to their development that they build those coordination skills that sport and activity can bring.

Importantly for the community, this will be provided free of charge. I speak to a lot of parents who want to do things like this for their children, but these things end up being £15-20 a session, across multiple children; it’s just not sustainable for some of the parents in the area. So I know they’re looking forward to the Centre being open just as much as I am!